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It's Fun to Play the Piano ... Please Pass It On!

If you smear stuff on your hands, you're not touching my piano! :-)No, but really - I'd say powder could drop between the keys which would not be so good. A good old handkerchief, taken with you on stage, wouldn't that be sufficient?

That's exactly the point. You want to be able to play under adversity. You can practice with the room being the wrong temperature, the seat the wrong height, a jacket on that you should have taken off, or a need to go to the bathroom that you have to be able to endure. Performance is all about playing in less than ideal circumstances. You can have somebody with developmental delays moaning in the audience, all sorts of distractions.

My hands sweat when I’m nervous or anxious. When I was younger and interviewing for jobs, and needing to shake people’s hands a lot, I used a product called Perspirex. It is for people who have hyperhydrosis or excessive sweating. You apply it at night for several nights at the beginning, it absorbs and works it’s magic, and during the day your hands (or wherever you apply it) does not sweat. And no residue to get on your piano. After the initial applications, you can maintain the results with twice weekly application. Downside is that it dries your hands up so I didn’t use it long term, just when I knew I was interviewing. If you’re only concerned about a recital, which is a short term endeavour, I’d recommend trying it, but do read the instructions for best results!

I sometimes think that, immediately after I have washed and dried my hands, the keys are more slippery than they are when I wait 10 or 15 minutes for metabolic or other processes to do whatever happens in the few minutes after hand washing. It's not that I advocate playing with dirty hands -- in fact, I'm quite averse to that. It's just that when my fingers have been freshly stripped of whatever normally builds on the skin over time, it's not a natural playing experience.

I sometimes think that, immediately after I have washed and dried my hands, the keys are more slippery than they are when I wait 10 or 15 minutes for metabolic or other processes to do whatever happens in the few minutes after hand washing. It's not that I advocate playing with dirty hands -- in fact, I'm quite averse to that. It's just that when my fingers have been freshly stripped of whatever normally builds on the skin over time, it's not a natural playing experience.

Agree.For me this seems related to whatever product I use or don't use.

Guys every piano player facing this issue while performing in front of audience. So, we can use so many otions when the fingers gone wet like paper hanky, power or cotten clothes. You can try any of them that will suitable for you.